Creativity

Patented innovations line shelves as shown in the patent library above, and over the years I’ve written a number of times about the increasingly recombinative nature of innovation. This posits that new innovations are often a combination of existing innovations rather than truly novel ones. A paper from a few years ago found that roughly 40% of all patents ...

One of the most prominent organizational factors, if not the most prominent one, is autonomy. Studies showed a one-way relationship between autonomy and creativity. Employees need autonomy to be creative. They don't need the autonomy to decide which project to work on, but they must have the autonomy to decide how to execute the project.

We now consume up to five times as much information as 25 years prior; outside of work we process roughly 100,000 words every day. This drains us of not only willpower (of which we have a limited store) but diminishes our ability to think creatively as well.

Just yesterday while perusing the Twitter stream I saw a quote attributed to Jonathan Ive that made me want to sit up and scream. The quote was relatively straightforward and seems innocuous on its face...

Will we prepare our children to compete in a world where creativity and divergent thinking become more important than rote memorization? Can we rethink our business structures and processes to embrace more divergence and creativity?

Recent research shows that consistently innovative companies hold 6 times the market share, make 3 times the profit, and do 50% better during recessions than their average peers. This article is an adapted excerpt from Yoram Solomon's recent book: Blueprints for the Next Big Thing.

There is so much talk about innovation these days, it's hard to sometimes distinguish the signal from the noise. In fact, the word innovation gets thrown around so much that it leaves people wondering: What’s really innovative?

Innovating innovation management itself needs to be recognized, which is why ISPIM, the International Society for Professional Innovation Management, launched the Grand Prize in 2015, to recognize excellence in innovation management.

Wen Sagi Haviv, a principal in the New York design firm, Chermayeff Geismar & offered to gift us with 1977 EPA Graphic Standards Manual, designed by the renowned Steff Geissbuhler it started us on an adventure that concluded this week when we met our goal. That means that this beautiful manual will now be available to our backers, and eventually to the public through the work of designers Jesse Reed and Hamish Smythe at Standards Manual. The experience has been eye opening and exhilarating. Here's what I've learned:

Uncertainty and instability are the key drivers of the business game and our clients are challenged by a diverse range of problems which are not going away. This means that the future will be very different from today and, as coaches, we are in a unique position to support and enable our clients to survive, master, and flourish within the playing fields of the future.